Borderlands “Claptrap’s New Robot Revolution” Impressions

Staying Power.  In the video game universe, staying power boils down to which title finds it’s way back to your disc tray time and time again.  After you’re done with the shiny new game of the week, which one do you consistently go back to?  The mega-franchises are usually a good bet; Halo and Madden seem to always get played by most people regardless of how long ago they released.  Another game that has incredible staying power, although somewhat of a sleeper choice, is Borderlands.  The reason for this is two-fold: fantastic post-release DLC support, and the intrinsic fun that a 4-player “shoot ‘em up, loot ‘em up” is.

Tackling the first reason, New Revolution is the fourth add-on pack for Borderlands, a game that launched almost a full year ago.  While every single piece of DLC has been incredibly varied, each one has stayed remarkably true to the Borderlands that everyone originally fell in love with, and New Revolution is certainly no exception.  The premise of the add-on is simple – a group of malfunctioning Claptraps are uprising, and it’s your responsibility to quell the threat.

Borderlands’s most glaring flaw has always been it’s lack of easily discernible story, which again rings true in New Revolution.  However, what it lacks in story telling, Borderlands has always made up for in charisma, and oh boy, is New Revolution chock-full of that.  The rogue Claptraps are unthinkably adorable.  Some sport over-sized military helmets, others have Mr. T mohawks, and those are only a few of the variations.  They’re easily the cutest things you’ll have to kill all week.  Their dialogue is brilliant, as well.  As one of them was dying, I heard him utter “I see three red lights”, a nod to the 360′s Red Ring of Death.  Gearbox has always done an incredible job placing tons of easter eggs in Pandora for those that are paying attention, and they deliver yet again.

While the enemies feel rather fresh, the missions feel a bit samey.  There’s a lot of component collecting to do, and the environments are certainly familiar.  However, if you’ve made it to the fourth installment of DLC, you’ll not only be ok with this – you’ll probably relish it.  It’s that same formula that never seems to get stale; in fact, it seems to grow stronger over time.  That’s why anyone that enjoys Borderlands is going to feel right at home sliding into New Revolution.  It’s a great curtain call for Borderlands, a DLC pack that accentuates the characteristics that true fans have fallen in love with, and proves yet again why this game has such incredible staying power.

Viva la Robolution!  Viva la Borderlands!